HCT

Play to Win, Test to live!

This was the tagline to our Heritage Day HCT. The whole Port Elizabeth Staff: coaches, interns, staff and site-coordinator were assigned roles in this major holiday event based on GRS principles. It truly was Grassroot Soccer at work.

Often you read about the millions of people that play the game informally at the grassroot level and I have played there most of my life. This event was an opportunity for an organization that does social profit work such as ours to harness the popularity of the game among the youth in the area to provide them with some education (on HIV/AIDS), an opportunity to test for the disease and play the game they love.

My direct supervisor Titie was in charge of the overall planning of the event, a big big job considering our target of getting 250 players and community members tested. As interns we were assigned various roles before and during the tournament, doing our best to support her. It was perhaps a little more difficult to do considering the fact that we are still figuring out the lay of the land, and we did lack experience with an event quite like this one. We gave it our best though, and I think our multicultural intern team did a sterling job.

New Start and the South African Health Department were our testing partners; we bought 300 HIV testing kits and planned on other various logistics for the day. This included lunch, snacks, t-shirts, advertising, venue, media, entertainment and recruitment of players. It was certainly a bit of a squeeze leading up to the tournament, but it was great to see the kick off of the tournament as kids from Zwide, and surrounding townships.

The day's schedule, which I played a part in planning was based on teams rotating between playing football, participating in Find The Ball (led by several GRS coaches) and if they chose to - getting tested for HIV. Things started off a bit hairy, as teams arrived slightly later than planned and some of the testers were not fully prepared at the assigned start time. We did however get things started in decent time and as soon as the DJ got his music going the tournament was well and truly on! It was an explosion of house, all day!

Part of the plan of the tournament was to attract passing members of the public, in addition to the +100 kids playing in the tournament. I was impressed by the spirit displayed by the teams participating in the tournament. The kids were well aware of the fact that testing was an essential part of their success in the tournament and there was more than a few cases of teams coming to test together as teams. There was lots of dancing, singing and healthy competition as the kids were engrossed in a great day out of organized fun!

Find the Ball was an important activity, seeing as it highlights the important point that HIV cannot be detected from someone's appearance. We made sure that on the schedule that each team did Find the Ball before they tested. I personally feel that more educational opportunities are necessary in terms of future HCT's.

The football itself was a joy to watch. We pushed to involve 15 to 17 year olds, but there were more than a few players outside of this range. Part of the problem was partnering organizations struggling to find participants in the age group therefore enlisting younger and sometimes older kids. It worked out in the end, and the tournament went without too much incident involving the difference in age.

As for testing, the most important part of the day, we managed to get 189 people tested overall, and although we haven't received the full breakdown yet, we do know that 5 people tested positive for HIV. I was in charge of the testing area on the day, as far as directing people to the right places and my guess would be that 100 to 110 players were tested on the day (updates to follow as soon as I have them).

Every individual who tested received pre and post test counseling which is crucial when dealing with something as important as the result of an HIV test. Each person also received a t-shirt which was a token of their participation in our event. In my eyes this is another means of spreading the name of our organization in the community, as we seek to expand our work in the community. The tagline, Play to Win, Test to live! was also on the T-shirt, another way to encourage more people to know their HIV status in an era of epidemic.The individuals who would have tested positive would also be refereed to local resources available to help them live healthy lives. This includes a local HCT center, providing access to counseling and Antiretroviral drugs (ARVs) which are free to the public. I can only hope that these individuals as hurt as they may be by the news will eventually be aided by this knowledge as they seek to live their lives differently.

The HCT was a lesson in community engagement for me, and I think that there needs to be even more community based events where further opportunities to educate, inspire and provide access to services to communities that are plagued by lack. I was proud to be part of this event, and I look forward to playing a role in the next one.

Pictures........

The Poster

Find The Ball

Interns with our big boss Mpumi (sunglasses) and Thamie, far right.

Some of the early birds

Skillz Banner

Some of the action from the boys' final.

updates on the way...

It was a hectic Heritage Day on Friday, with the HCT being an all day event....The event was a whirlwind of action culminating in 189 kids and community members getting tested for HIV...Updates on this event are on the way! stay tuned.

Generation Skillz has also begun in PE. A group of some of our best coaches are getting trained in the curriculum which will target older kids in the 15-19 age group. I am not part of the training but it is being held in our office, so I hope to provide some insights on the development of this brand new initiative which is so necessary.

Moja!

The week ahead.

This week promises to be a big week as we prepare for our first HCT tournament** on Firday the 24th which is Heritage day in South Africa, a public holiday. This will be the first major Grassroot Soccer event I will witness. With a testing target of 250, the planning for this event has been nothing but large scale. Lets hope for good weather and a strong attendance.

As far as the student strike goes, one hopes for less violence and practical solutions. The situation as described earlier is a result of lots of time off for kids due to the teachers' strike and an extended holiday prior this, related to the football World Cup. There were no disruptions to my knowledge today. Plans are in place for Grade 12 to write their trial exams at individual schools. I'm not sure what the timeline fo that is, but the violence seems to have eased at least for the moment.

** Previously known as a VCT, the HCT (HIV Counseling and Testing) will be a soccer tournament involving 16 teams of 10 (6 girls' teams plus 10 boys' teams each with 10 players) that will serve as an avenue for these youths  and members of the community to find out their HIV status.

Big news from HQ...

Press release... "September 6, 2010 marked the launch of Grassroot Soccer’s newest project, Generation Skillz, in Cape Town, South Africa.  Designed for older participants, aged 15-19, the Generation Skillz curriculum addresses four key risk-drivers of the HIV epidemic: multiple partners, intergenerational/transactional sex, alcohol abuse, and gender-based violence. 

Responding to the disproportionately high prevalence of HIV amongst young girls and new research that shows that one in seven new HIV infections could be prevented if women were not subjected to physical or sexual abuse, this bold new curriculum aims to use soccer to spark vital conversations that challenge gender norms and address the difficulties facing teenage youth in South Africa..." GRSweb

See the rest of the article here.

Generation Skillz will be coming to Port Elizabeth next week, as 14 of our coaches will be trained in the new curriculum. Updates to follow.

New HIV infections declining!

According to UNAIDS, Sub-Saharan Africa is leading the decline in incidents of new HIV cases. It is worth noting that the region still has the highest concentration of infections which makes these declines very significant. One hopes that continued efforts to combat the disease will see further declines going forward. Check out the story and report here.

Introducing: The GRS Champions

The purpose of the GRS Champions Program is to highlight role models and their connection to Grassroot Soccer’s HIV Prevention Program in a manner that will give the GRS program credibility and impact with youth.

Grassroot Soccer sees role models as crucial elements in the effort to affect positive social change, and so they utilize athletes, entertainers and positive role models who have proudly agreed to support the organization in the fight against HIV/AIDS in Africa. The local coaches recruited by GRS are role models in their local communities, an important factor in the delivery of the GRS curricula!

Here are some of the celebrity GRS Champions:

Nolusindiso "Titie" Plaatjie - "A well known soccer star at provincial level, Titie joined Grassroot Soccer specifically to assist with HIV/AIDS awareness believing that the fight against HIV/AIDS is a fight for the world. Currently working as Port Elizabeth Project Coordinator, Titie is a key facilitator in raising HIV/AIDS awareness among youth and people of her community." I happen to work with Titie and she has proven to be one of the inspirational figures that have made my experience here so worthwhile. GRS is lucky to have her!

"Methembe Ndlovu was born in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe in the township of Luveve. A gifted student he went on to be the first student from his area to attend Dartmouth College in the United States. After Dartmouth he returned to Zimbabwe where he captained both Highlanders FC and the Zimbabwean National Team. Known more commonly as “Mayor”, Methembe is one of the best known and most popular faces in Zimbabwe. His combination of intelligence, charisma and abilities as an educator make him an invaluable asset to the GRS team. In addition to serving as GRS Zimbabwe Program Director Methembe has held the position of head coach at Highlanders FC, and assistant coach for the Zimbabwe National Team."

See the other champs here.

Away from the bright lights and manicured fields, there's another side of soccer....

Next Tuesday in New York city will be the premiere of the movie Pelada, which is all about the magic of soccer in the lives of regular people all over the world. Its a story based on the novel idea that if you have a soccer ball anywhere in the world you can make connections regardless of your background, language, prejudice or any other difference! Pretty cool!

Ethan Zohn and some of the GRS Directors will be hosting a special screening of the documentary/film in New York, with admission fees going to the great work GRS is doing around the world. If you're in the city, please do support! Details below:

September 21st, 2010 - 8pm - Legends Bar and Restaurant
Doors open at 7:00pm
*Seating is first come, first serve - so come early!
*Kids are welcome and encouraged

Introduction by Ethan Zohn, Q&A with Directors to follow screening

Legends Bar and Restaurant
6 West 33rd Street
New York, NY 1001-3321


Buy tickets online here.
Watch he trailer here.: http://www.pelada-movie.com/

Promoting GRS at Greenacres mall..

Starting yesterday continuing on to Saturday (tomorrow) there is a community Health week at Greenacres mall, which is a plush shopping center in suburban PE. Our jobs as interns at this event started yesterday. We set our table up with Grassroot Soccer fliers, pictures and 2 interactive games from the Skillz curriculum.

Its been an interesting experience so far. We weren't soliciting funds, rather making people aware of our organization and looking to make connections with people (kids, parents, teachers, and school officials) who were connected with schools for potential interventions (Skillz lessons) down the line. We were inevitably confused for a soccer team/club a few times due to the presence of soccer balls at our table and some people began pitching their own business ventures to us!

We're hoping that our table, flush with interactive games, our happy faces and some waka waka playing in the background would bring a smile to people's places. Its a different kind of challenge, but we've taken it on and hopefully the lessons from yesterday will help us today and tomorrow.

Off to look up laughter yoga (another pitch made to us yesterday), before another day at the mall...

***update (9/19) - Our mall experience varied by the day but in the 3 days there we were able to meet some interesting people and spread the word about the work that GRS is doing. We also handed out our office details so schools and orgs can contact us to deliver interventions in their institutions. We actually got to meet some school principals and teachers in addition to tons of kids (we handed them Skillz based magazines) and adults. We set up the fact and nonsense game from practice 2 alongside several key messages that we read to different people stopping by our table. This was the first intern driven project and with the help of the coaches, I think we did well. We were certainly forced to think on our feet and make things work without too much guidance. On to the VCT!

Strike after a strike turns tragic

Matters have truly gone out of hand as the strike has been taken up by a new demographic. Starting this week students in Grade 12 (which is the last year of high school) have been protesting the fact that schools required them to take their preliminary matriculation exams so soon after the strike. All around the country kids in this grade have dropped their pencils and taken to the streets, including kids here in Port Elizabeth.

Confrontations with the police have been reported as crowds of students have damaged property and blocked off streets, in fact on Tuesday police resorted to using rubber bullets in order to disperse the crowds of students. A 17 year old girl in the Free State lost her life yesterday as a warning shot by a policeman ricocheted and hit her in the back. To think that someone has lost their life over this whole situation is beyond belief. May she rest in peace.

Sithembile updates

Yesterday morning we walked into assembly at Sithembile primary on our way into the office. It was a reminder to my own primary school days at David Livingston and Haig Park primary respectively back in Harare! Led by one of the teachers, all the kids were singing several spiritual songs, all in their own special way, showcasing their voices but betraying a slight lack of tune! The group as a whole sounded good though, and this assembly reminded us that the strike was over (at least for now) after 3 weeks without school I forgot that our office is based in a primary school (see previous post). Schools are back in which means Grassroot Soccer can get back to the Skillz curriculum. When the civil servant strike was declared some interventions were ongoing and others were about to begin. Needless to say, this proved to be a major disruption to our work (needless to say, I am fully supportive of better conditions for professionals such as teachers).

This week, our team will be exploring different ways they can re-engage with the schools. This is tricky as schools are making use of after-school time to catch kids up, since exams are on the way. The strike has forced the team to get creative and coaches had been deployed to a juvenile prison and a couple of orphanages, where the strike wasn’t necessarily affecting the kids (and if it did we wouldn’t be embroiled in the politics of it). I hope to provide more details on what we come up with in the coming weeks.

Newsletter on the way!

Meanwhile, starting at the end of this month I will be producing a newsletter that will be available to family, friends, supporters, donors and anyone else interested in receiving it. I will be using it as an active way to summarize my time here on a monthly basis, a means of communication with all who have supported me and another creative way to solicit funds for the remainder of my internship. If you are interested in receiving the newsletter please email me at tchitongo@grassrootsoccer.org. The newsletter is all I will send you, and I am open to suggestions and tips as always.

All the very best! Happy Tuesday.

S.O.S.

Last Thursday was the first real field trip of my internship experience so far. After a couple of weeks spent mostly in the office I got to visit the S.O.S Children's Village in Port Elizabeth. SOS is an internatinal organization dedicated to the care of orphaned and abandoned children. They have villages on every continent, providing a link between the orphans and donors, who can sponsor a child through online donations. I am fortunate enough to have both parents still in my life and I cannot even imagine growing up as an orphan.These kids have faced a lot but they are still able to show joy and SOS allows them to live as normal a life as possible

The SOS village was stunning. Well kept grounds, a safe environment and plenty of space to play for the kids made for an exemplary organization in child care services. We got to see one of our coaches deliver Practice 6 and 7 of the curriculum with the kids. It was certainly great to see the glow in the faces of the kids as they played games, sang songs and they got to learn about dealing with AIDS in the community and avoiding the HIV virus. This is what GRS is all about, I thought to myself. After a little over an hour we had to leave, but I left with a sense of joy. The kids displayed an overwhelming sense of good cheer and willingness to participate. I am very excited to see other sessions, our coaches are truly dedicated to their work, or teaching through play in this case!

Knowing that the coaches are able to make such an impact on the kids is reassuring. Several of the coaches were telling me that leaving the kids on the last day of the curriculum is actually very difficult. They get invested in the games and curriculum, while at the same time a bond with the coach forms. The coaches are all local, and the kids can get in touch with them fairly easily which helps.

I was also happy to learn of the important work organizations like SOS do to assist orphans all the way until they become independent. We visited one of the houses where a family created by SOS was based. Kids of different ages are matched up to live together and a mother (who is appointed and trained by SOS) oversees the household. The house which is within the SOS premises has a kitchen, living room, bedrooms and a play area. The mother is appointed as head of the household, overseeing the kids who attend schools close by, and buying meals and supplies for the house. The idea is to raise the kids in as normal a way as possible within the SOS village. There are plenty of opportunities to interact with the other kids and SOS organizes activities that keep them busy as they learn and grow!

To find out more about SOS South Africa please follow this link.

Reality.

The other day we had the chance to spend a fair amount of time in Zwide and Njoli townships. I’ve seen poverty and struggle back home, in urban and rural areas alike, the same sort of struggle can be found here in Port Elizabeth.

As much as South Africa has been able to successfully host the football World Cup and its manufacturing industry is one of the biggest on the continent there are still millions of South Africans struggling to make ends meet. This is a recurring theme across the continent of course, but sometimes I need reminders in order to fully appreciate the harsh realities on the ground.

Many in the township have no consistent employment, HIV and AIDS are ravaging the population and “by any means” necessary is a mantra followed by too many, resulting in too many incidents of rape, violence and theft. Of course PE is not the only city/ region facing such problems. Africa’s poor, have been short changed by historically failed leadership and mismanagement.

During the day the streets are littered with kids, of all ages, kicking around rag soccer balls, chasing each other down and generally not worrying about the bleak surroundings they find themselves in. By no means would I want to burden the thoughts of a child, with a run down of all of life’s harsh realities. But to leave a child, any child in these circumstances makes for an uncertain future. This is why the visit to SOS was particularly significant to me. In the SOS village, the kids have been given an opportunity to grow , express themselves and learn uninhibited by their surroundings. Every child deserves opportunities,and spending a few hours in the townships brought home so many of the troubles facing our continent.

There’s work to be done…

the GRS intern class of 2010/2011

Although I haven't met all the GRS interns, I have gathered enough info to know that they are an amazing group of people's who skills and energy will be a great resource to the organization! My fellow interns in PE have taken to the challenge with energy and verve, it promises to be some year.

Follow this link to see all the intern blogsites. They make for some interesting reading. We have interns in Cape Town, Kimberly, Lesotho, Malawi, and Zambia to name a few!

slow internet....updates on the way!

Coach's story.

One of the key activities in the Skillz curriculum is the coach's story. Here the coach tells their story, where they are from and how HIV and AIDS or another big challenge has affected their lives. This occurs in the second Practice typically. The coach's story is not only a means of showing the impact the HIV epidemic has had in local communities, but the coach delivering the lesson seeks to show that it is okay for the kids to get things off their chest and share them. The goal so early in the curriculum is to get the kids comfortable in their learning environment and the coach has a chance to earn their trust.

Many of the coach's stories I have heard have been hard hitting, tragic and touching. But their show of resilience and desire to bounce back by dedicating part of their lives to Grassroot Soccer is admirable. I am sure this has an impact on the kids participating in the program too. Here is the story of one of our Port Elizabeth coaches, documented by Austin Merrill, for Vanity fair a few months ago.

****update (September 4)**** As if it was like a response to this blog and the things I have said so far about my internship, the universe has contrived to ensure that my GRS experience will remain one of the unforgettable periods in my entire life as I learnt yesterday afternoon. One of our supervisors, a Master coach was helping us understand the curriculum fully because he felt (rightly so) that wee needed to be fully invested in it in order to be able to be of real assistance to the coaches. When we were done he threw perhaps the first curve ball I have faced in my intern experience. He informed us that 2 of us would be doing practices from the curriculum the following week, at the development session with all 27 coaches being out participants. Did't see that one coming, but I'm glad to have been pushed like this. The position of the coach is unlike any other and in order to fully understand it, I get the chance to play their role fo 45 minutes! It can only be good for my experience and GRS will further be entrenched in my mind long after this is all over! Watch this space for updates on how I do, Tuesday awaits! Of course, I will be administering Practice 2..

Quotable quote..

"I have fought against white domination and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the idea of a democratic and free society. If need be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die."
Nelson Mandela

Using football for HIV/AIDS prevention in Africa: CSI report

Before I started working with Grassroot Soccer through the Lose The Shoes Soccer tournament back 2 Springs ago (April 2009), I wasn’t aware of very many programs that were using football as a means to engage kids in disease prevention interventions like what GRS does. I was aware of football teams and personalities being heavily involved in charities, but I never saw the game being used in an actual curriculum, such as in Skillz. It turns out that this field is getting bigger and bigger, the best part being that research is proving that it works!

According to streetfootballworld, ‘A new study by Coxswain Social Investment, entitled “Using Football for HIV/AIDS Prevention in Africa”, has found that football-based programmes are uniquely successful in preventing the spread of HIV/AIDS.’ This is a huge revelation for an organization like Grassroot Soccer and others scattered around the continent of Africa doing similar work. Not that evidence hasn’t already justified the work GRS does, it is just especially heartening to see that there is further evidence that these programs are making an impact. The ultimate test will of course be the passage of time.

I look forward to seeing a future where kids who have been through these programs can stand up and say how important these intervention have been in their lives as HIV infection rates drop in generations to come.

The study was done in the months running up to the FIFA World Cup, and it features many organizations that are part of the streetfootballworld network. According to streetfootballworld: “The study concludes that football programmes can lead to profound behavior change, a huge aspect of HIV and AIDS prevention. It also highlights that football programmes are successful with hard-to-reach audiences, at tackling sensitive issues within the safety of the team and, because of its appeal to young audiences, football can reach those most at risk. While it is not a UNAIDS study, experts from UNAIDS contributed their time, experience, and resources to the Coxswain Social Investment study. It is a legacy product of the Football for an HIV-Free Generation Initiative.”

I was very excited when I first discovered this report and to see evidence based backing for such an important cause is encouraging to the people dedicationg so much of their lives to make a real change for the future.

I urge you to check out the report here, and leave feedback on in the comments section below, I would love to hear your thoughts. I will leave my own impressions below. I look forward to hearing from you.

Some of the organizations mentioned in the report:

Love life - South Africa's national HIV prevention initiative for young people.
Kicking Aids Out - global network with network organizations, partners and associates operating in many sub-Saharan African countries.
Whizzkids United - an organization using football as a means to teach boys and girls essential life skills designed to enable healthy behavioral change.

Other organizations using football to promote positive social change:

Play 31 brings together people who have been split by armed conflict.
Alive and Kicking manufactures sports balls to provide balls for children, create jobs for adults and promote health education through sport.
Foot Solidaire seeks out and assists abandoned young soccer players around Europe whose dreams have been placed in the hands of opportunistic agents.
Coaches Across Continents helps young people around the world learn practical coaching and leadership skills that benefit their local communities.

Passion.

Third week on the job, and passion is the best word to desribe the people I am working with. From my supervisors, to the coaches working in the communities of Zwide, New Brighton and Motherwell I feel an infectious sense of joy, and overwhelming passion. Passion enough to understand the size of the problem we are facing as individuals and as an organization. I can't help but feel lucky to be here, after each passing day I ask myself if I did all I could to help GRS advance its mission. I hope to answer yes, more often than not. What is this passion I talk about: its the way the coaches have welcomed us, the interns, the way they are willing to share their experiences in order to help us understand GRS and of course their dedication to the job at hand, that is reaching out to the kids in their communities!

I recently read the Alchemist (too me 2 days), a modern classic whose storyline can be used as an analogy for our own lives and how we choose to live them. For those who have read the book, you know Santiago's search for his Personal Legend, something we should all be doing - achieiving your personal Legend involves living your dream.

A key phrase in the book, that really resonated with me was this (paraphrased): "When you want something, all the universe conspires in helping youto achieve it.”  (if you haven't read the book, please do so!) We certainly want something, an HIV free generation and future, lets go!

There is something very special about Grassroot Soccer; the people it draws, the impact its had in 8 years and its unique approach, all feed into the incredible momentum the organization continues to have are all factors that I hope will inspire and result in an HIV free generation! Where there is a will there is a way.